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 Over Two and a Half Centuries of Sustainable Forest Management
Cowls Sawmill and Land Company has been sustainably managing forests and manufacturing lumber in Massachusetts’ Pioneer Valley since 1741. As a 50 plus year member of the American Tree Farm System, Cowls foresters adhere to the strict standards may of the world's oldest sustainable forestry and certification program. Cowls timberland is inspected every five years to ensure proper forest management which includes the conservation of soil, water, and wildlife. Multiple use, wildlife conservation, recreation, and watershed protection are important factors in managing the woods for timber production. We are proud to be the 2005 winner of the National Hardwood Lumber Association's Forest Stewardship Award. Cowls’ timberland has produced high quality and plentiful logs for over two centuries, a testament to sustainable forestry practices.
About half of the logs Cowls saws come off its own timberland, which the company has been managing from between 10 to 260 years, depending on the tract. Cowls only selectively harvests and never clearcuts for the purpose of high grading or logger convenience.
For over 260 years we’ve made it a rule never to clearcut, but in 2006 we find ourselves in the surprising position of being asked by the State of Massachusetts’ Department of Fish and Wildlife to help create woodcock habitat by clearing areas their biologists have identified in our forests! We’re now proud partners in the Northeast Regional Woodcock Initiative and are learning more about improving wildlife habitat on our timberland.
Cowls forest land is on a fifteen year thinning/selective harvesting rotational cycle. All of Cowls' timberlands fall under Massachusetts Chapter 61, which is the 10-year management plan for landowners who want to keep their property in timber and not develop it. Cowls saws pine, oak, and hemlock in its mill, so foresters sell the rest of the timber, whether high quality veneer logs or low grade pulpwood, to other mills.
The majority of company-owned land is within 30 miles of the sawmill, but in order to assure a great supply of saw logs for the mill, Cowls also purchases logs from suppliers in Connecticut, New York, New Hampshire and Vermont. One of Cowls' largest outside suppliers is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts itself. We often purchase logs from the state forest reservations around the Quabbin Reservoir and elsewhere in the western part of the state. Logging is handled entirely by independent contractor crews, as is trucking. And the best thing for the Quabbin’s water quality is sustainable forest management.
Cowls' timberland in 31 towns in Hampshire and Franklin counties are open and accessible for public recreation. Our rule is that recreationists are welcome to hike, bike, snowmobile, ride ATVs and horses, hunt, fish, and short-term camp on Cowls land, as long as these recreationists respect others rights to peacefully enjoy the same. When one user group tries to prevent other user groups from using or enjoying our skidder trails and woods, the aggressor’s use rights will be discontinued. Instances of long term camping (squatting), vandalism, uncontained campfires, trash and vehicle disposal, and threats of federal takings of hiking trails have threatened some parcels’ future public use. It is our hope that open public use of our private land can continue long into the future. This will be the case as long as we’re not penalized for our generosity.
Cowls is committed to holding onto its timberland for the long term and annually expands its land base by buying more timberland and conserving it under Chapter 61. When it occasionally sells parcels or house lots, the proceeds are used to purchase significant new acres of timberland, and many times more land is bought and conserved on an annual basis, than is sold. Valuable partnerships exist with snowmobile associations and hiking groups such as the Appalachian Mountain Club, in which member volunteers improve and maintain the skidder roads and bridges they use as trails. Cowls Tree Farms will remain open to hikers, bikers, snowmobilers, ATV riders, cross country skiers, bird watchers, sportsmen, and others, as long as the land is not abused, and as long as users respect others' rights to enjoy the forest as they so choose.
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